For the Power of Love
by Phoesong
Summary: Claus expected nothing more than a normal freshman year in highschool along with Lucas, Ness, and Ninten. However, when Lucas is hit by a drunk driver, something seems amiss, and the year is definitely far from normal. It is true that many people will do anything for the power of love, but there are those who have more selfish desires in mind. AU. Original title: Back to the Past
1. Chapter 1

**Author's** **note**:

**Hello! I'm actually new to the Earthbound/Mother series (never played the game although I desperately want to), and it's something I fell in love with after playing SSBB. Correct me if any info I use in the story is wrong. ****On the other hand, this is an AU! Ana, Paula, Ness, Ninten, Lucas, Claus, and Pokey are all highschool freshmen. Unless if stated, family backgrounds will remain the the same as canon.**

**Thank you for your patience. I do not own the Mother/Earthbound series, Oreos, and Brawl.**

**P.S. The first two chapters might start off a little pointlessly lighthearted, but the story will develop more tone as it continues.**

* * *

><p>"Come on, Claus. Just this once!"<p>

"What?! NO!"

"Pleeease?"

"...You're not going to back down on this, are you?" Claus sighed at Lucas's hopefully pleading expression. Of the two siblings, he was the rash troublemaker; Lucas was his sweet, shy counterpart. But somehow they clicked together; Claus couldn't imagine a world without Lucas. And it was no secret that Claus liked nothing more than making Lucas happy.

"Fine...Just don't take too long, okay?" Lucas literally beamed, his smile illuminating the room, and dashed off, stumbling across the room in his haste. Within a minute, Claus found himself sitting in front of the bedroom mirror as Lucas combed his red hair meticulously.

Claus mock-glared at his brother's reflection. "I still don't get how you take the time to do this every day."

Lucas stuck his tongue playfully at him through the mirror. "It'd take a lot shorter if your hair wasn't knotted."

"What can I say? You know my bed hair's messy-Hey, watch the-OW! Are you trying to pull out my hair?!"

"No," Lucas giggled. Claus attempted to rise, only to be pushed back down by his twin.

"But your hair-!" he protested. Claus shook off his brother's pleas and rose.

"It looks fine, Lucas! We need to hurry or we'll miss the bus!" Lucas frowned, but didn't object as he slung his bag across his back and raced out behind Claus. Before he left though, Lucas hesitated on the threshold and bit his cheeks anxiously. He stared across at a slumped figure spread out on the couch.

"Bye, dad." Lucas called out softly. Claus, doubling back to fetch his brother, snorted contemptuously.

"I doubt he heard you, Lucas. He's always either drunk or passed out."

"But-"

"Ah crap! Come on! We can't be late already on the first day of high school!" Claus shouted frantically, scooping up his brother's bag off on his shoulders. Lucas, realizing the lack of a heavy weight off his shoulders, instinctively ran after him.

"Claus? CLAUS! Give back my bag!"

"NEVER!" Claus cackled, two bags dangling behind him as he dashed to the bus stop.

"Wait, Claus-"

"AHHHH!"

*CRASH!*

"Ow, Lucas, watch where you're going!" Ness said, rubbing his head. Lucas winced internally and flushed in embarrassment.

"Sorry..."

"Good to see you though," Ness said grinning. Lucas gave a shy grin back.

"Hey! You two okay?" Claus hurried over.

"Yeah, we're fine," Ness answered.

"GUYS GUESS WHAT?!" An excited shout entered the air.

"You finally acknowledged your own stupidity?" Claus suggested helpfully.

"Shut up, Claus." Ness bit back a snort at Ninten's disgruntled look. "No, my mom's buying me a new pack of Oreos today! And it's the _seasonal_ edition that comes out like once a year!"

"..."

"Shut up, Claus."

"I didn't say anything!"

"You look like you're judging me."

"Really? Well, maybe because **I AM**!"

"Oh yeah? I-"

"Woah, guys," Ness interrupted. "I know we're all happy to be bus buddies again this year, but I don't want to hear you bicker all the way to school every morning like last year."

"He started it!" Ninten and Claus yelled, pointing at each other. Lucas stifled a laugh; Claus's hair was already tussled up from a neat duck tail to a shocking red explosion, and Ninten's hat was knocked onto the ground. Noticing Ninten's hat next to his feet, Lucas picked it up and gave it back. Ninten gratefully accepted the hat and plopped it back onto his head as the bus arrived.

"Thanks, Lucas. I don't understand how someone as sweet as you has **this** demon for a twin brother."

"YOU TAKE THAT BACK!"

They bickered all the way to school, Ness and Lucas awkwardly sitting behind them in silence.

* * *

><p>The lunch bell rang, and students filed out in a babble. Ness opened his locker and dumped his textbooks in.<p>

"Hey Ness!" Ness turned around, greeting the familiar speaker warmly.

"Oh, hi Paula! How was your summer?"

"Ahh, you know, same as usual...," she petered out. There was an awkward silence as Paula nervously fidgeted in place while Ness tried hard to avoid her stare, feeling his cheeks turn warm.

"NESS!" Ninten shouted out joyfully. Ness gratefully took the opportunity to escape the awkward tension.

"Hi Ninten. How was English?"

"Awful," Ninten groaned. "You know my main weakness is writing. Can't stand to write more than a page."

"Did you squabble with Claus again this morning?" Paula asked, hands on her hips. Ninten smiled nervously.

"Maybe...?"

"He and Claus were bickering the entire way to school," Ness groaned. Paula threw her hands up into the air in exasperation, although her mouth betrayed a smile.

"Ninten!"

"What?" He said defensively. "It's not like we're actually arguing or anything. We just bicker a _little_."

"That's nonsense and you know it. At least take pity on Ness and Lucas and tone it down a bit."

Ninten rolled his eyes. "Oh all right. By the way, Ness, when's our first practice? I heard you're the captain-congrats."

"Ahh thanks. We have our first game at the end of this month, so I'm recruiting this weekend."

"WHAT? That early?"

"Yeah. Baseball season this year somehow starts a lot earlier than last year," Ness shrugged helplessly. Ninten whistled.

"That's harsh."

There was a pause.

"Well, I'd better get going. I promised to meet Ana for lunch. See you later, Ninten, Ness!"

"Bye Paula!" Both boys chorused. Ninten noticed Ness watch Paula leave and snickered.

"You like her, don't you?" Ness snapped of his daze.

"Wha-what are you talking about?" We're just good friends, that's all," he said defensively. Ninten grinned cheekily.

"Sure..."

"Like you don't love Ana!"

"T-t-that's totally different!" Ninten stammered as badly as a Lucas caught in a lie.

"Are we talking about Ninten's hopeless love life?" Claus drawled as he suddenly popped up from nowhere. _HOW IN THE WORLD DOES HE DO THAT?_

"NO!"

"What Ninten means is no." Ness babbled unusually. Claus looked back and forth at both boys weirdly, and then shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly.

"Figures. Any girl would be too good for Ninten."

"Hey!"

"Anyways," Ness hastily cut in. "Have you seen Lucas?" Claus frowned.

"That's weird. He told me his art class ends 10 minutes early today. I thought he'd be hanging out with you guys."

* * *

><p>Students mingled pleasantly in the courtyard, carrying their lunches outside to enjoy the sun. However, one person was not-so-enjoying the festivity.<p>

"Aww, look at the wimp jump!"

"Pokey, please give back my sketch book!" Lucas said desperately, jumping to snatch it out of the bigger boy's hands. Pokey only guffawed.

"Not feeling so tough without your friends, hmm?"

"Ooof!" Lucas cried out in pain as Pokey pinned his shoulder roughly against the brick wall.

"You know what? Kneel down in front of me and beg. Then maybe I might give it back to you." Lucas said nothing; he normally tended to combat a problem with silence. Unfortunately Pokey looked even more furious as he misinterpreted his silence as defiance.

"Kneel down _now_. Or do you want me to punch you until you can't stand?"

"Pokey, I've never done anything to hurt you. Please stop," Lucas pleaded. Pokey's eyes burned with frightening anger.

"Why? Why? When you and your twin arrived here, you two ruined EVERYTHING! You...you-!" He calmed down. "Why am I even bothering to explain to you anyway? Kneel down, now!" Pokey raised a threatening fist. Trembling, and hating himself for what he was about to do, Lucas slowly lowered his legs...

And slid down abruptly as the force pinning him to the wall vanished. Gasping as he sprawled onto the concrete floor without warning, he stared numbly at Claus, who was fuming angrily, his face as crimson as his fiery hair.

"Get your filthy hands off my brother, Porky," Claus spat, his eyebrows scrunched up in a dangerous V. Ninten and Ness immediately rushed to Lucas's side. Pokey only guffawed.

"If it isn't blondie's twin. Hey blondie, good thing your brother's here to rescue you! How does it feel like to be useless and pathetic?"

"Shut up, Pokey," Ness said quietly. Pokey fixed his eyes on him instead.

"Ness," he replied in a pleasant tone. "How are you, old friend?"

"Don't think that I'll excuse your behavior because we were friends once." Pokey's face fell.

"Don't you remember? We were good friends until these two came along," he pointed his thumb towards Claus and Lucas. "Then you ditched me for them. Right Ninten? Ninten can back me up." All eyes flew onto Ninten.

"What?! The only reason we're not friends anymore is because you started acting like a jerk to all of us! You even sabotaged Ness's baseball game because you got jealous in 7th grade! Blame yourself!" Ninten said indignantly. Pokey shrugged.

"Okay, I acted like a jerk. I admit it. You know we were all immature then!" Pokey said easily. "But I know I can be a good friend to you again. Better than that stupid coward and red-head over there."

"I'm warning you, say one more word...!" Claus now looked downright murderous. Ninten shuddered. If Claus ever shot that death glare towards him, he would have fled for his life. Pokey only laughed.

"I mean, come on, Ness! Their mom died from a car crash and now their dad's some drunkard so they live with their loser grandfather. How pathetic is that?" Claus finally snapped. But before he could tackle the bigger boy, Lucas and Ninten each grabbed an arm and dug their heels desperately into the ground.

"He's not worth it, Claus!"

"Clausy, no! Just ignore him! You'll get into trouble!"

"NO! GERROFF ME! I'm going to kick his ass skyhigh! YOU HEAR ME!" Claus screeched, completely deranged.

"You've done enough damage for one day, Pokey. Leave. Don't think we won't make you," Ness said clearly in a dangerously low tone. Pokey searched his face, then staring at the wildly raving Claus being held back by a glaring Ninten and struggling Lucas, reluctantly threw Lucas's sketchpad onto the ground and left. Immediately, Claus stopped clawing like a feral animal and fell limp, panting from exertion.

"I swear, if he insults Lucas or me again, I'll-"

"That's enough, Claus," Ness said tiredly. "You okay, Lucas, Ninten?"

"Yeah," Ninten said, breathing heavily. "Just...give me a breather." Immediately, he swiped out his inhaler.

"I'm fine," the blonde replied quietly, head hanging. Claus immediately felt guilt wash over him. He had been so caught up in his anger at Pokey that he had completely forgotten about Lucas and Ninten's conditions. With a yelp, Lucas was pushed to the ground as Claus searched for any wounds.

"I'm okay, really, Claus. Claus? You can stop now! CLAUS!" He shrieked with laughter as his twin tickled him on his sides. Immediately Lucas gasped for breath.

"That was embarrassing, Claus! We're in high school now!"

Claus shrugged. "So? That doesn't mean I can't tickle you." Ness helped Ninten up to his feet. There was a pause.

"I'm such a coward," Lucas whispered, avoiding their eyes in shame. "He...Pokey told me to beg and I almost did..." Claus scowled.

"It's not your fault. That jerk," he muttered. "I can't believe he was once close friends with you, Ness."

"Pokey has family problems too," Ness said darkly. "But still...I can't believe he actually stooped this low. Lucas, don't listen to him. You're a good person, and our friend, and that's all that matters."

"Ness's right, Lucas. Don't beat yourself up!" Ninten tried to lighten up the mood. "Hey, you guys want to hang out at my house after school? I really need someone to play Brawl with!"

"You have four controllers. Can't you play with your sisters?" Claus asked.

"My sisters don't understand the importance of playing Brawl." Ninten sniffed, clearly insulted. "And my mom's buying the new seasonal pack of Oreos...," he added in convincingly. They all laughed.

"No one is more addicted to Oreos than you, Ninten," Claus said, rolling his eyes.

"That's true," Ninten said smugly.

"Sure!"

"I'm down!"

"Count me in!"

"Good. Now let's eat lunch, I'm starving!" Ninten exclaimed, pushing all of them towards an empty picnic table.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's note:**** Thank you for the reviews. :) My second chapter is posted a lot earlier than expected because the next chapter might take a while. Criticiam is appreciated. I know I'm probably painting Pokey as the evil stereotypical villain, but all will be explained due time.**

**I do not own the Earthbound series or SSBB**

* * *

><p>"Ninten?"<p>

"Hmmm?"

"I'm worried about Lucas," Ness said. They were currently engaged in a heated brawl tournament. It was already evening and the twins had already left. Ness's mother, however, allowed him to stay over at Ninten's a little longer.

"Pokey's still bullying him, and I have a feeling that it's not going to stop any time soon. Today was a close shave. Next time, Lucas might not be so lucky."

Ninten snorted. "I didn't know Pokey could hold a grudge against Lucas and Claus this long. He must really like you a lot."

"Ninten!"

"What? Oh, not in that way," Ninten said hastily.

"Gross, man!" Ness grimaced. Ninten fell into hysterics, gasping for breath.

"Oh your face! This is priceless! Hehehehe! Paula would kill you out of jealousy."

"Why me?" Ness lamented.

"'Cause she's your girlfriend," Ninten added, smirking. Ness rolled his eyes playfully.

"I told you, Ninten, there's nothing happening between us-FALCON PUNCH! YES! Ha!" Ness exclaimed as Captain Falcon knocked Pikachu off the screen.

_"GAME!"_

"NOOOO! PIKACHU!" Ninten yelled desperately.

"I won fair and square," Ness smugly said. Ninten sighed dramatically.

"Oh well, at least it was an _electrifying_ battle."

"Oh no, Ninten, don't-"

"This defeat was _shocking_," Ninten continued.

"Ninten, I'm warning you-"

"I guess I should _pika _better character next time! Eh? Eeeeeeeeeeh?!" Ninten asked, playfully poking Ness in the side. Ness scooted away and groaned.

"Your Pokemon puns are the worst."

Ninten grinned. "You're just jealous."

"In your dreams, Ninten."

Ninten gave barking laugh. After an entire minute, he composed himself before speaking.

"Seriously though, I wouldn't worry too much about Lucas. If anything happens to him, I'm sure Claus would never let anyone get away with it." Ninten shuddered. "Did you see the look on Claus's face today? If Lucas wasn't there to calm him down, Pokey probably would've been mauled on the spot."

Ness winced. When truly enraged, the red-head's smoldering anger was as safe as an exploding volcano.

"I'm glad he has a better hold on his emotions now. It was particularly bad when their mom died…"

* * *

><p>Claus hated dinner time. No, it wasn't the food; his grandfather was a pretty decent cook and Lucas made delicious omelets. But their grandfather always insisted that they eat all together. "What good is it to call ourselves a family if we never sit in the same room for more than a second?"<p>

So Claus was now sitting across from his father, moodily picking at his omelet. After their mother's death, his dad had turned to drinking to cope. Gone was the practical, fun-filled family man, replaced by the pitiful excuse of an alcoholic. A few empty bottles surrounded him like a defensive barrier from reality. Silently, the stoic man began to chug his fifth bottle.

Alec would try starting off a conversation and Lucas would respond over-enthusiastically to make up for the absence of his father and disgruntled brother, but their weak efforts always dwindled and died within minutes. Flint's omelet still sat untouched in his plate. Finally his grandfather gently stood up and took away all the unopened bottles of alcohol.

"Sonny-jim, I think you've had enough ter drink for today. Eat. Get some food into that stomach. Think of your boys, Flint," Alec said softly. Talking to Flint was akin to walking on broken glass; the man was now more sensitive and prone to volatile reactions. However, Flint gave no notice of Alec and continued staring dumbly at his now empty bottle, shaking it around.

"It's..It'sempty," he slurred. "Gone. Like Hinawa." Flint giggled. "Ain't it funny? Hinawa's gone an' my drink's all gone…See? Gone…gone." Claus tensed visibly. His grandfather looked aghast.

"Flint! Not in front of the children! Aren't ya ashamed of yourself?" Alec sighed, realizing his words weren't reaching the drunken man. He turned around to face his grandsons. Lucas was staring at his father in quiet sadness while Claus's face hardened into a deep scowl. "Sorry, boys. Your father seems to have too much to drink again."

"Doesn't he always?" Claus muttered. Flint snapped his head towards him, eyes strangely unfocused.

"You-You…whadidja say?"

"Please, Claus," Lucas said in a warning voice akin to fear.

"You're not the only one who misses mom, you know! Lucas and I cook and clean, Grandpa Alec makes sure we have just enough money. You're our dad! Why don't you help us out for once?!"

Flint stared hard at Claus in an unsettling glare. Then he suddenly bashed his bottle against the table with a loud crunch. Glass littered the floor like hail.

"Help? HELP?! I HELP!" The man bellowed dangerously, pounding a fist onto his chest. "I still work on the fields to get enough money…I just…need to drink one more bottle…Need to forget..." Almost as suddenly as it happened, Flint's head dropped onto his chest and gave a light snore.

"Claus, FLINT!" His Alec yelled. "That's enough! Claus, take out the trash. Lucas, I'm sorry, but I'll need you to wash the dishes today. Your father," he stared disappointingly at the figure now keeled over muttering incoherently. "Needs someone to help him into bed."

Claus looked like he wanted to continue his unfinished argument, but Lucas gripped his hand tighter.

"Come on, Claus…" Lucas begged. Claus looked at his desperate brother and his pleading, blue eyes. Reluctantly, he allowed Lucas to lead him away from the dinner table. Away from shattered glass and shattered feelings.

* * *

><p>Claus returned after dumping the trashbags outside in the proper bins. As he opened the door, he was surprised to come face-to-face with his grandfather. They locked gazes. Alec lowered his eyes in shame.<p>

"I'm sorry Claus. I'm sorry that your dad, my son-in-law…," his throat felt stuck as the older man gazed into his defiant blue eyes. _No child deserves an absent mother and negligent father. No child deserves this… _He felt his heart break.

"T-Try to get along with your dad as best as you can. Even if he's being difficult. For Lucas, hmm?"

"Okay..."

Alec ruffled Claus's hair affectionately. "That's a good boy. We don't have enough food for breakfast tomorrow, so I'm going out to buy some food at the local market. As the elder twin, I'm leaving you in charge. I'll be back as quickly as I can." He quickly walked to the car and drove away, feeling Claus's stare bore accusingly at his back throughout the entire trip.

* * *

><p>"Claus?" Lucas tentatively peeked inside the bedroom. Claus lay despondently on the bed.<p>

"What?" He mumbled moodily. Lucas sat next to him, playing with his toes.

"I'm sorry," he said in shame. Claus nearly cricked his neck turning around. Of all the statements he had expected, that one flew completely over the radar.

"Why are you sorry?" he exclaimed.

"Well…"

It's not your fault dad's always drunk." Lucas shook his head vigorously at his brother's response.

"No. If I were brave like you, I might have been able to stop you from getting into trouble from Grandpa Alec. I know it's unfair and Dad might not be there for us, b-but I promise I'll always be here for you!" Lucas babbled worriedly. His concern touched Claus; it was typical of Lucas to worry about others over himself. Claus gave a forced grin.

"Woah, Lucas, I'm not in trouble."

"You aren't?" Lucas blinked owlishly. "That's a first!" he laughed, playfully nudging Claus in the arm.

"Hey!" Claus protested. He gave a wicked grin. "Trouble, huh?" Lucas immediately felt nervous.

"Uh…Claus? Why are you smiling like that? And why are you creeping closer like that? Oh no, no, no, no-ARGH!" Immediately, Claus tackled Lucas off the bed. Lucas desperately tried to escape, but all he ended up achieving was mussing up Claus's hair.

"AHH Claus, no!" he squealed, and Claus grinned evily.

"Brace yourself, brother…TICKLE FIGHT!" Lucas shrieked with laughter as Claus mercilessly tickled his sides.

"C-C-Claus! S-S-Stoppit!"

When an exhausted Alec finally returned, he saw that a snoring Claus was sleeping soundly, one arm draped protectively over his twin brother.

* * *

><p>Next morning, Ness found himself tapping his foot impatiently on the school courtyard. Ness didn't consider himself a morning person, but Claus on the other hand took it to a whole new level.<p>

"I hate mornings," Claus mumbled grouchily, stepping off the bus. Lucas was looking the other way, trying not to laugh at Claus's disgruntled expression.

"Really? So do I!" Ninten said excitedly. "Wow, Claus, we have so many similarities in common!"

"Go away, Ninten," Claus snapped. Ninten only tossed an arm around his shoulders.

"Smile! A smile a day keeps the doctor away! LIKE THIS!" Ninten flashed a beaming smile.

"Your smile makes me want to puke."

"Oh yeah? Your _face_ makes me want to puke."

"That wasn't even creative."

"Creative? Ewwww...why do we have our "Creative Writing" class first today?" Ninten lamented. "It's so hard to write about that essay assignment."

"It's not _that_ bad. _Write about someone you admire and how he/she influenced you_," Ness answered.

"For once, I have to side with Ninten," Claus grudgingly admitted. ('_THANK YOU!' Ninten yelled in the background) _"Who are you writing about, Ness?"

"Err...my dad," Ness said defensively, expecting them to make fun of him. They blinked curiously at Ness's sudden awkwardness. "I mean...he's never there but...I...he-"

"I think that's a good choice," Lucas interrupted softly. Ness relaxed noticeably.

"Thanks, Lucas," he exhaled shakily. "Who did you choose?"

Lucas started stammering like a broken tape recorder, "I-I-I..."

"Ooooh is it a girlfriend?" Ninten teased. The poor blonde flushed as bright red as a tomato.

"W-What? No!"

"10 bucks it's a girl," Ninten whispered audibly, winking at Claus. Claus smugly smiled back.

"Oh, you're on!"

"N-No it's n-not!"

"Shame you can't say the same, Ninten," Ness added casually. A little _TOO c_asually.

"Huh?"

Ness leaned over with a wicked grin. "Your essay's on Ana, right?" Ninten started to sputter incoherently, finding that the tables were turned against him.

"I...s-she...NO!"

"Looks like we have a lady's man here," Claus added cheekily. It was now Ninten's turn a delicious shade of crimson.

"I d-don't know what you're all talking about! Hey look, it's almost time for class! Letsgo!" An embarrassed Ninten purposely strode forward, ears ringing with his friends' chortling. A promising start for a wonderful day.

* * *

><p>"LISTEN UP KIDS! I am Mr. Macho, your Physical Ed teacher," The muscular teacher barked. "I take Physical education <em>VERY<em> seriously. Because we have basketball and tennis courts behind the school, we will stay outside until dismissal! No one climb over the school fence; it's off bounds!" Students groaned, but he ignored them.

"But to allow you to adjust to high school, I will generously allow you to do anything you like during the first week. That includes sleeping, socializing, whatever teenagers do. After that, no games: we WORK OUT! NOW EVERYONE OUTSIDE!" Students scattered.

"Hey, Lucas, Claus, Ninten! Join us for a game of baseball!" Ness called out excitedly.

"Baseball?" Ninten perked up. "OH! I'm in! I'm sooo in! I call first bat!"

"Oh fine, I suppose it can't hurt to actually do something productive," Claus said. Ninten beamed.

"CLA-"

"DON'T."

"-USSSSS!"

"You need to stop that habit of butchering my name like a deranged fan girl," he grumbled. Ninten stuck his tongue out, then turned to his nicer twin.

"LUUUUKE! You're coming too, right?" Lucas shook his head, flashing a shy smile.

"I feel a little worn out from doing an impromptu art project today. Thanks, but maybe next time."

"Aww come on! Pleeeeeeeeease?"

"Are you sure you'll be fine?" Claus interrupted with a hint of concern. Lucas nodded enthusiastically.

"Yeah, sure! I'm going to take a nap right here. Go ahead, Claus. It's okay," he encouraged, sitting down underneath an oak tree. Claus reluctantly allowed Ninten to drag him away bickering.

("Why is it that you never act that way to me?"

"There's a difference. He's my brother. You're the obnoxious comic relief."

"HEY!")

Lucas closed his eyes and gave a deep breath. There was something oddly relaxing about thinking alone in the cool afternoon air. A nice nap sounded like a wonderful idea-

"Hey Blondie."

Chills ran up Lucas's back. He opened his eyes fearfully, and the bigger blond bully filled his vision. "P-P-Pokey…" He stammered. Pokey however, gave an unusually warm smile that took Lucas off-guard.

"So…I guess this is awkward?" Pokey took one look at Lucas's wary face and laughed. "Yeah, I don't blame you. I would have acted the same way."

"What do you want, Pokey?" Lucas said quietly. Pokey looked at him surprised.

"I don't want anything, I-I mean," Pokey cleared his throat nervously. "I'm sorry." Lucas blinked surprised, but before he could register Pokey's strange behavior, the bigger boy beat him to it. The apology seemed to break the dam, and the sentences burst out.

"I was jealous of your friendship with Ness. We used to be best friends until you and your twin came. He started hanging out more and more with you, and less with me. Don't get me wrong; I blame myself. The jealousy made me irrational. It twisted me. See what I have become? I can't believe I ended up bullying you and your friends for petty revenge." Pokey laughed bitterly. "Just like my father...he punishes me, like I do horrible things to you."

Lucas said nothing.

"I have become my father," he whispered. "H-He beats me sometimes. For fun even. And now...Oh gods I feel sick..." Pokey curled up, facing away from Lucas, and began to weep openly. Shudders wracked his portly frame as he sobbed openly. For once, the intimidating boy looked so vulnerable. Lucas bit his lip, feeling conflicted; then his good nature took over.

"Pokey, it's okay," Lucas said softly, placing a hand gently on his shoulder. Pokey shook it off.

"No, don't touch me. I'm awful. I don't deserve your kindness..."

"Why don't you talk to Ness? He's a reasonable guy."

"I don't think he'll ever trust me. I've betrayed him too many times. Our history is so twisted, and I..I really regret it. A-All I wanted was a f-friend...," he said quietly. Lucas hesitated, then swallowed his fear.

"Pokey? If you want, we can be friends," he said softly. Pokey turned around in shock.

"R-Really?"

"Really," Lucas gave a beaming smile. "Let's start over then. My name is Lucas. Nice to meet you," he greeted, extending a hand.

"Pokey," he replied shyly, grasping the hand. "So, Lucas, do you want to play dodgeball together?"

"Sure!" Lucas turned around encouragingly. "I'll go get the ball!"

He failed to spot a malignant smirk flash across Pokey's face.

* * *

><p>"HOME RUN!"<p>

"Nuh-uh! I already tossed the ball to Claus on home base!" Ninten vehemently protested.

"No you didn't! You were this far away before my toe touched the base!"

"I swear we caught the ball before you arrived! Claus, tell him!"

"Don't drag me into this, Ninten!"

"CLAUS!"

"Actually, I'm pretty sure Ness is safe."

"How could you betray me, Claus? My own teammate!" Ninten lamented. Claus stifled a laugh.

"It's only baseball!"

"Only baseball? ONLY BASEBALL?!"

"Ninten, it's okay," Ness tried to encourage him. "It's only one home run and-wait, what's that sound?" All three boys turned around to see a wailing ambulance parked on the side of the school. Ninten squinted.

"That's weird...maybe someone got a heat stroke?"

"At this cool temperature?" Ness frowned. "I don't think so."

"Asthma attack?" Ninten suggested. A crowd was now gathered around the gate of the fence. _Where Lucas had been under the oak tree_. Suddenly Claus felt cold dread creep up his spine.

"Asthma attack sounds more probable...What do you think, Claus? CLAUS!" The red-head had suddenly sprinted ahead without warning. Ninten and Ness ran to catch up to the sprinting twin.

"Claus! Come back!" Now they were approaching the babbling mass of students.

"I can't believe this happened-"

"This is awful-"

"Do you see him?"

"Is he okay?"

"Lucas? LUCAS?" Claus called out frantically, worry seeping into his normally indifferent voice. There was still no familiar smiling face, no sign of his characteristic blond cow lick. Ness and Ninten caught up, panting heavily.

"Claus, I'm sure he's fine, don't worry," Ninten reassured anxiously as Claus pushed his way through the crowd. Suddenly Fuel blocked his way.

"Claus! Thank the lucky stars I found you!" Claus tried sidestepping him, but Fuel purposely blocked his path. "Claus, I think you should turn back...I-I...Lucas...He's-he's-" Claus swept the stuttering boy aside. His eyes registered blood, so much blood splattered on the road like a grotesque painting. Jagged glass from a nearby dented car window gleamed dangerously like serrated teeth. And then he spotted that happy, familiar shock of golden hair...

"Lucas?"

He heard the sharp intake of breath from Ninten. Claus rubbed his eyes. _This is just a dream, just a dream..._But if it was just a dream, then why was Lucas still lying so pale on the harsh concrete? Like he was-

"No, he can't be..."

_Blood coated Hinawa's half-open eyes, her last words still weighing heavily on her lips._

Blood trickled down Lucas's face, his clear blue eyes blank and unknowing.

"No. Lucas! LUCAS!" Claus shrieked, lunging forward and shakily stumbled to his twin's side. "Th-This isn't funny, Lucas. Please wake up, wake up-!"

"Young man, please step back," the ER medic stated in an authoritative tone. "Bring him on the gurney! He's lost a substantial amount of blood!" As the crew carried Lucas onto the stretcher, Claus scrambled forward.

"Young man-"

"NO!"

"Claus, calm down," Ness murmured quietly, struggling to hold the wild twin back. Ninten was still silently gaping at the scene in shock.

"NO! You can't do this! Lucas! Lucas..." He couldn't breathe, everything felt numb, and Lucas, oh gods, _Lucas-_

He heard Ninten let out a cry of shock, and his dizzy vision spun to black.


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's note:**

**My exams start next week and should last at least two weeks. I finished up this chapter to pass the time. Thank you for your support! :) Your reviews, favs, and follows are much appreciated!**

**I do not own the Mother/Earthbound series**

* * *

><p>By the next day, everyone knew of the car accident.<p>

Claus's absence in school didn't go unnoticed. When the teachers scrolled down to his name for role call, their expressions would shift to that of immense pity. Although Miss Marshmallow, the stoic Creative English teacher, said nothing about Claus's absence, both Ninten and Ness noticed how her lips seemed to purse into thin line. The only exception was Professor Giygas.

Professor Giygas taught math exceptionally well and had a brilliant mind, but he was easily everyone's least favorite teacher. For some reason nobody understood, he hated children - particularly teens - with a loathing passion. Why he had picked up teaching as an occupation was anyone's guess. Stopping at Claus's empty desk, his cold smile only seemed to widen.

"And it looks like Claus is absent. Tut tut...already skipping class at the beginning of freshman year. That's one tardy slip in the record."

"Professor, Claus is absent because of a family matter!" Ninten pleaded. Professor Giygas only fixed his icy stare onto him.

"Any absence involving family matters must be signed by a parent or guardian, young man. I do not recall you acting as Claus's personal secretary." Ninten stiffened slightly at the rebuke.

"But sir, it was a car accident-"

"Automobile accidents do not exempt students from education. Time passes on. What matters most is that you learn as much as you can here and lead fruitful lives." He looked distastefully at Ninten, who was fuming. "Of course, there will be several of you who won't be as fortunate, I dare say...Now, turn to page 29 of your textbook. We will be going over..."

"Ninten, calm down. He's only trying to rile you up," Ness whispered frantically. Ninten ignored him and abruptly stood up. The class turned deathly silent. From the first day of school, Ninten easily took on the role of class clown. Maybe it was because of this reputation that Professor Giygas seemed to hate Ninten the most. In fact, he utterly despised him, and was happy for any reason to show it.

The professor's eyes flashed dangerously. "Sit down, Ninten."

"Lucas was hit by a car, and you could at least show the courtesy of respecting Claus's absence by excusing it," he snapped. "It's not like nobody in school knows what happened!"

"The accident was a terrible tragedy," Gigyas waved his hand airily. "However, young boys of your age tend to be rather reckless and...well, are too easily swayed into making careless decisions."

"Lucas didn't plan to get run over by a drunk driver!" Ninten shouted hotly, cheeks burning aflame and clenched fists shaking. "Don't you dare insult him like that!" Anger bubbling up at the injustice of it all, Ness was about to open his mouth and yell along with Ninten until he felt a prickling sensation on his neck. Ness suddenly turned around to catch Pokey's eye. Instead of giving him a sickly-sweet smile or his usual trademark sneer, the chubby boy flinched and seemed to pale nervously at Ninten's outburst. Noticing that Ness was staring back at him, Pokey threw a scowl and halfheartedly set his attention onto Ninten, purposefully avoiding his gaze. Ness frowned. Pokey was acting strange...Giygas's hiss jerked him out of his brooding thoughts. The professor seemed to be losing his cool.

"I will tell you again, young man. _Sit Down. _I am reaching the end of my patience-"

"YOU AND YOUR IDEAS ARE PATHETIC-"

"Detention, Ninten, for an entire week," Professor Giygas cut in smoothly. "If you disrupt the class again, I will report you to the Principal's office. I will not hesitate to add another tardy to my list." Ninten glowered and worked his jaw. For a second, Ness was convinced that Ninten was going to do more than burst into another heated rant, but Ninten only gritted his teeth before dumping himself back into his own seat.

Professor Giygas smirked. "Now then. Turn to the appendix. I will teach you how to derive these formulas..."

* * *

><p>Claus didn't go to school for a few days.<p>

He couldn't eat much. Even looking at an omelet gave him the urge to throw up and puke right over at the dinner table.

Sleeping was torture. He rarely fell asleep these days, and whatever meager slumber he scrounged usually led to nightmares...dreadful flashbacks of his mom dying. He would bolt up from bed screaming for his mom to run before the huge truck barged into her tiny frame. Tonight though, he saw Lucas. His twin brother was standing on the edge of a flowery meadow atop a cliff, clutching a vibrant yellow sunflower to his chest. Claus spotted no signs of any blood or gruesome wounds.

"Lucas! Wait up!" Claus called out frantically, reaching out with his hand. Lucas turned around balefully.

"Claus...why didn't you save me?" the blonde whispered, his voice like the sigh of a wind through a dead flower field.

"I'm sorry I wasn't there...Please come back home! Don't leave me alone with dad!" he pleaded. Lucas only looked at him sadly.

"Goodbye, Claus." Lucas teetered ever so slowly over the edge before falling over edge of the cliff...

Claus woke with a strangled gasp. "Lucas?" He stared at the bed next to him, where Lucas should be sleeping...the cold emptiness that met his gaze gave him a gut-wrenching nausea. He felt like throwing up. Running to the bathroom, he heaved up his pitiful dinner. When the wracks of pain subsided, he allowed himself to wash his face numbly at the sink. Suddenly, he looked up at the bathroom mirror, and saw his brother's face swimming there. Like a drowning man, Claus desperately reached for the reflection only for his bare hands to hit the surface of the cold, unyielding glass. His reflection was beyond his reach, just like his twin brother...

He screamed in anger and punched the mirror, shattering it in a spiderweb formation. His distorted reflection glared back, and Claus punched it again, not caring if his knuckles were screaming in pain, because this pain was nothing compared to losing his other half...he was drowning in despair...

He vaguely heard someone enter the bathroom. Gently, but firmly, that person turned his fists away from the mirror and steered him toward the bed. Before he even hit the mattress, Claus clocked out from exhaustion.

* * *

><p>The next day, he woke from a stabbing pain in his left fist. Looking at his hands, he saw that someone had neatly bandaged them. He felt so famished and dizzy, and wondered what the crap he had been doing all night to feel so drained. Did he pull a muscle from pitching a baseball again?<p>

_Oh wait. I remember. Stupid mirror._

As the events from last night flooded into his head, the dead feeling returned. Emptiness and crushing loneliness was gnawing at him from the inside...Claus had to do something, he couldn't just sit here doing nothing or it'd drive him up the wall-!

Just then, the bedroom door creaked open. To his surprise, his father slowly walked in with a bowl of warm chicken soup and sat on his bedside, his lopsided cowboy hat covering his eyes.

"How are you doing, son?"

"..."

The man rubbed a hand behind his neck awkwardly. "I know I haven't been the best father since your mother passed away. You never forgave me for that, and I don't blame you. If anything, Lucas was the optimistic kid-" he cut himself off abruptly. The room seemed to grow ten degrees colder. Claus's glare was frosty.

"...Here," Flint handed over the soup.

"I don't want to eat!" Claus snapped, immediately regretting the crushing weariness that settled in after his short burst of fury. Flint only reacted by lowering the brim of his hat.

"Eat," he mumbled. "I can't bear to lose two of you." For a split second, Claus was able to see Flint's eyes from under the hat. They brimmed with volumes of silent, unspoken pain. His father suddenly looked so vulnerable...Then Flint coughed, suddenly bolting out of the chair, and briskly strode away. Claus stared at his soup with an unreadable expression for an immeasurable amount of time. Then ever so slowly, he gripped the spoon and dragged a salty mouthful to his lips.

* * *

><p>He visited his unresponsive brother in the hospital everyday since the car accident. Like his other trips, he carried a yellow sunflower with him. But this time Ness and Ninten tagged along, Ninten looking a little surlier than usual.<p>

"What's up with you?" Claus asked annoyed. Ninten only mumbled under his breath sourly. Ness shook his head. _I'll tell you_ later,his eyes seemed to say. Silently, they walked down white corridor and entered the farthest room on the left.

Claus dunked the fresh sunflower into the vase on the bedside cabinet. The flower looked radiant compared to the six others he had brought, each one looking slightly more desiccated than the next.

"Hey Lucas. I brought you another sunflower. You like sunflowers, right? You told me that they smelled like mom," Claus swallowed, his voice cracking. Seeing his brother so broken and unmoving was so wrong on too many levels. Lucas liked singing and running around with Boney. Lucas climbed the apple tree in their backyard to toss him apples from the highest branch. Lucas wanted to become a veterinarian because he loved animals. Lucas...Lucas...Lucas...

"Why? Why him? Why again?!" Claus suddenly yelled. "I BET THAT DRUNK SICKO IS PROBABLY LAUGHING HIS ASS OFF RIGHT NOW!"

"Claus-"

"Don't you 'Claus' me, Ness, that drunk driver doesn't know how I feel, h-he-"

"You don't deserve this," Ninten said quietly. "Anyways, there's nothing more you can do; that drunk driver was already thrown into prison."

"Prison? PRISON?! What good does that do? That doesn't bring Lucas back." Claus said bitterly. Behind him, the heart monitor beeped monotonously.

"Lucas wouldn't have wanted you to act this way, Claus-"

"Don't tell me what Lucas wants me to do, Ninten," Claus lashed out. "That's what everyone said about my mom. Then she died from a fucking car accident, and people kept telling me, 'Cheer up, your mother wouldn't like you to break down like this.' Well, NEWS FLASH: SHE'S NEVER COMING BACK! EVER!"

"CLAUS!" Ness shouted angrily. "Ninten was only trying to help. Get a grip on yourself! Lucas isn't dead, he's still alive, and we're trying to help you! How do you think we feel?!" Claus stiffened up in surprise.

"...I'm sorry," Claus muttered.

"It's okay, we get it," Ness said softly. Ninten, who was staring at Lucas's comatose form however, frowned.

"Wait, there's something I don't understand. Why was Lucas on the road in the first place? He would've had to climb over the fence, and Coach Macho warned us not to."

"What?" Claus said confused. _Why did that thought never occur to him in the first place...?__  
><em>

Ness chewed his lip, deep in thought. "Do you guys know what Lucas was doing when we played baseball that day?"

Ninten shook his head. Claus hesitated. "He told us he was going to take a nap...but something must have made him change his mind." The red-head frowned. "But what?"

None of them had an answer to that question.


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's note: I haven't updated this in a while, but again thank you for your reviews and support! ****This chapter was a tad bit difficult to write but I managed to make it flow a bit smoother. **

**The story is going to expand slightly from what I had originally planned (so I wouldn't be boring you all with teenage Claus angst all the time). ****I will change the title/summary if necessary (If I can think of a less corny name), but other than that, the story won't be too drastically different. Just shifting around a few viewpoints and getting a mixed assortment. :) Don't worry; I'll still give ya'll the fair share of Claus love. SHARE THE LOVE**

**Erm...Something you should probably know-I'm a fan of cliff hangers. Yep, that's right, I'm officially an awful person. Join the club.**

**On the other hand...Happy 2015!**

**I do not own the Mother/Earthbound series.**

* * *

><p>"What do you mean you can't play on Friday?"<p>

"I have another detention, remember?" Ninten said glumly. "Stupid Professor Giygas."

Ness ran a hand through his own messy black hair. It didn't take much to realize that the baseball captain was clearly agitated. "But you're one of the best batters out on the field! I hate to say this, but all of the new recruits weren't up to par as I thought! We need every player and veteran accountable for this season." He glanced at him desperately. "Can't you get a parent's note to excuse you from Giygas?"

Ninten snorted contemptuously. "Fat chance. My parents think I deserved it. And no-" he said hurriedly as Ness opened his mouth again. "I'm not going to go over and ask Professor Giygas. He might use baseball as leverage or blackmail me for all I know."

"Then what am I supposed to do?!"

"Choose one of the substitute players," Ninten suggested.

Ness scowled darkly. "I know Professor Giygas isn't being very fair to you...but he clearly likes to get under your skin to rile you up on purpose. Don't rise to the bait and you should be fine."

"Easy for you to say!" Ninten cried. "I swear, he picks on _everything_ I do. Dress code, attitude, posture..._Sit up, Ninten. Your shirt isn't tucked in, Ninten. Answer my question, Ninten._ It's like he loves picking on me!"

"I'm sorry, Ninten," Ness said regretfully. "But after Claus dropped the team yesterday, I can't afford any more goof-ups. Honestly, if the principal ever decided to kick you off the team, I have no idea what I'm supposed to do."

"Wait...CLAUS DROPPED THE TEAM?!"

"Yeah."

"We need to get him back."

"I know." Ness rubbed his eyes tiredly with one hand. "But it's like a part of him died ever since he came back to school. He hasn't spoken a word to me after that hospital visit." Ninten knew what he meant. Claus would bristle up with an immensely hostile snarl that promised certain death to the unfortunate soul who dared to disturb him. But other times, Ninten would catch him looking wordlessly lost. It was heart-wrenching for him to watch Claus suffer.

"He needs this, Ness," Ninten urged. He glanced around nervously before whispering to the baseball captain. "I'm afraid that Claus might do something stupid. You know how reckless he gets when his feelings go out of control. Baseball could help distract him."

"He's not listening to me," Ness said dully. "I have a feeling that you'll be more successful with that." Ninten was surprised. Ness was the implied leader of their friend group, and his rationality and quick-thinking made him a naturally well-liked person everyone looked up to.

"Me?" Ninten laughed without mirth. "Ness, are we even talking about the same person? We're talking about _Claus_."

"Yeah."

"_Claus_. Ginger hair. Kind of tall and lanky. Extremely frightening temper."

"You got it."

"Ness, are you listening to yourself? Claus and I argue all the time! Every. Freaking. Day. If you can't get through to him, what makes you think I could?"

"I might get along better with Claus, but you understand him better." Again, Ninten was shocked by Ness's perception. Ness only blinked back seriously, dead violet eyes studying him. Ninten shuddered. Lucas's absence really did a number on all of them. Claus dealt it with uncontrollable rage, Ness with silent brooding. Ninten tried to sound happier to fill up the blank spaces, gave more pranks, more jokes. But he knew it wasn't working. Time to step up the ball game.

"Okay. I'll talk to him." Ninten suddenly smirked. "You're absolutely hopeless without me." That jibe was enough to snap Ness out of his stewing thoughts and return his smirk.

"That's what you'd like to think, 'Ten."

* * *

><p>The mission "Talk to Claus" went badly from the start.<p>

Ninten caught Claus standing at his locker. The red-head was stonily seizing his sketchbook for art class. Claus looked even worse since their last visit to the hospital together; there were gruesome purple-green bags under his eyes and his hair looked unkempt for days.

Ninten gulped. He was literally entering the beast's den. An angry, fire-breathing beast with razor-sharp claws and black, nightmarish wings at that. This was _suicide_. But he didn't have the heart to continue watching one of his close friends break down completely in front of his eyes.

_It was now or never._

He sidled next to Claus and coughed. Claus didn't react.

Ninten coughed louder. Again no response.

Ninten hacked his lungs out.

"Do you need an inhaler, Ninten?" Claus asked indifferently.

"No..."

"Well cut it out. I don't want your germs all over my stuff."

"Umm…Claus?" Ninten started off warily.

"What?" The disgruntled twin replied, finally turning around to stare at him wearily with sunken eyes. "I have to get to class, Ninten. Make this quick."

"I think we should, ack no I meant _you_ should um…rejointhebaseballteamYEAH!" he babbled nervously. Claus just stared at him and blinked.

"Sorry?"

Ninten took another deep breath. "I heard you quit the baseball team. Ness is really upset about that. Actually scratch that-we're both kind of upset about that."

Claus shrugged his shoulders. "Sorry. I didn't feel like it."

"Oh come on, Claus!" Ninten tugged at the hem of his jacket sleeve desperately. "We're just worried that you might be a tad too obsessed with thinking about Lucas-"

"Ninten-"

"And we know you're really upset over this-"

"_Ninten._" Claus's eyes were sparking dangerously now, but Ninten forced himself to plow through.

"But turning yourself into a wreck isn't going to help anyone-"

"Turning myself into a wreck? TURNING MYSELF INTO A WRECK?!" The ugly beast had finally reared its head, the snarling beast awakening in the shape of Claus. Ninten involuntarily took a step back as the beast roared and unleashed its fury. Students were now stopping to stare at them fearfully.

"Why don't _you_ try not turning yourself into a wreck after your brother was plowed down by a goddamn truck!" Claus spat venomously, pushing him roughly onto the ground. "Just…STAY OUT OF MY WAY, NINTEN!"

Claus stormed away, frightened students parting before him easily as he were a deranged murderer wielding an enormous axe. Ninten stared wordlessly at his friend's retreating form before mouthing a word Professor Giygas would definitely bury him alive for.

"Well, _fuck_."

This was a lot harder than he thought.

* * *

><p>"So…How did it go?"<p>

"Shut up, Ness," Ninten grumbled. He glared accusingly at his friend, who was now resisting the urge to break into hysterical laughter."'You understand him better,' Ness said. 'I have a feeling you'll be more successful,' Ness said. You traitor!"

Ness tried to keep a straight face despite the fact his lips were threatening to break into a smile. "Oh well. I tried. I heard him bellowing from three classrooms down. He must have been really upset."

Ninten was unamused as they walked down the empty school hallway. "_I'll_ say."

"It's okay...at least you tried." Ness sighed.

Ninten groaned and hid his face in his hands. "Great. Now Claus hates my guts and I'm the laughingstock of the school."

"Then nothing's changed," Ness joked.

"..."

"… :D "

"Ness?"

"Yeah?"

"Stop trolling me."

"Okay." Ness looked pitifully at his friend. "But I really did think he'd open up to you. I mean, at least Claus talked to you, right?"

"If you count _yelling my ears off and hollering bloody murder_, then I guess yeah. But no thanks to you, we're back at square one. Any suggestions, captain?" Ninten said sarcastically as they stopped in front of Professor Giygas's classroom. Ness suddenly frowned.

"Actually, I wasn't able to tell you guys, but Pokey's been acting slightly…odd."

Ninten snorted. "Oh yeah, he's probably disappointed that he didn't finish off Lucas himself-"

"No, have you noticed that he hasn't picked on any of us since Lucas was sent to the hospital? And he's in our physical education class too."

Ninten opened his mouth, then closed it in shock. "You're right. Do you think-"

The door suddenly opened behind them. Professor Giygas stared down at them both distastefully. "Ninten. I told you to come here after school for detention, not to _socialize. _You should know better than to gossip outside with the _baseball_ _captain_." At these words, Professor Giygas threw Ness a scornful look.

"See you later, Ness," Ninten mumbled despondently before entering the classroom. Professor Giygas gave a last cold smile before shutting the door with a steely click. Ness clenched his fists at how badly Professor Giygas was treating one of his close friends before storming off wordlessly. Having nothing else to do and having missed the bus, Ness walked home, silently boring a hole through the sidewalk with his intense focus.

"N-Ness?" Ness looked up startled. Picky was standing behind him, frightened.

"Picky?"

The younger boy quickly glanced sideways before nervously wringing his fingers. "D-Do you know what's wrong with Pokey? He hasn't been very responsive much lately a-and my parents are getting w-w-worried," he stammered. Frightened tears were beginning to form in his eyes. "H-he wouldn't tell me when I t-tried to ask him…Y-You were his friend…C-can you tell me what's going on?"

The older boy stared at him dumbfounded before wordlessly shaking his head in bewilderment. He had suspected that Pokey was acting oddly, but now that Picky was flatout noticing…

"Oh. Okay." Picky deflated, looking defeated.

"Sorry I couldn't help," Ness said absentmindedly before giving him a look of concern. "Are you lost? I can walk you home-"

"No, no, I'm good," Picky said quickly. "M-my brother's s-supposed to do that..."

"PICKY! THERE you are! Come on, useless, I don't have all day-" Pokey stopped abruptly. For a second, he stared dumbly at his former friend. Ness only returned the gaze with unreadable violet eyes. During this brief scrutiny, Ness noticed that Pokey had bags under his eyes, not unlike Claus. Then grabbing Picky's hand, Pokey left abruptly, leaving Ness to furrow his eyebrows in worry and confusion.

_What's going on, Pokey?_

* * *

><p><em>"We're just worried that you might be a tad too obsessed with thinking about Lucas-<em>"

Claus angrily kicked open the front door. Who did Ninten think he was, telling him what to do?

_"And we know you're really upset over this-"_

Fuming, he threw his school bag onto the living room floor-

_"But turning yourself into a wreck isn't going to help anyone-"_

"Stupid Ninten."

_Stupid Ninten who's actually right_. His mind whispered.

"Shut it." Claus scowled darkly. "Great. Now I'm talking to myself. I'm officially crazy."

_But he's right, you know. _That voice in his mind insisted. _Ninten has a point. You've been so desperate to prove it wasn't Lucas's fault for getting run over..._

"It's not his fault! Lucas wouldn't climb over the fence on purpose...would he?"

_If you broke down completely you wouldn't be able to help anyone. _

"Not that I could help anyone in the first place," Claus said bitterly, thinking about his dead mother and comatose brother, not to mention his drunk father. Everything was crumbling around him...Suddenly he felt exhausted, and the air seemed cold and hostile. He hugged his knees to his chest. "I can't help anyone," Claus whispered hoarsely, his eyes suddenly stinging.

"...Claus?" Flint stood at the doorway. He stared at his son curled miserably on the couch with an unreadable expression. Claus flushed in embarrassment that someone had caught him in a state of weakness and straightened his back, his expression of misery suddenly shifting to that of defiance.

"...I'm back from school." Claus mumbled. Had he looked up, he might have noticed that his father's palms were shaking uncontrollably in spasms, that Flint was leaning slightly against the wall for support. But Claus chose to continue staring stonily at the floor.

It hurt Flint to see him like this. Claus reminded him too much of his energetic, yet stoic self, and Lucas took after Hinawa's shy, warm personality. With Lucas gone, there was no mediator, no one to bring the two together. But despite that familiar cold mask of indifference Claus was now wearing, his eyes betrayed him. They revealed conflicting emotions: anger, pain, sadness, confusion, a silent plea-

Flint stumbled over slowly. The two sat side-by-side in silence, but for some reason, Claus didn't feel like the silence was cold and uncomfortable. Rather, it felt reassuring: the presence of company who understood the same pain.

Suddenly Flint coughed. "I...I quit drinking. I figured I should take care of the farm a little more. Sow more crops. Raise more cattle. Save more money for our family."

Claus felt stunned. "That's...good," he managed to say.

His father shifted uncomfortably. "It ain't going to be easy," he admitted bluntly. "But it's the right thing to do."

Claus had no idea what to say to that. Flint had literally given up all hope after Hinawa's death. Lucas's car accident should have been more than enough to make his father crumble into ruin, but here this strange man stood, vowing to rise up and rebuild his world from the ashes.

_Then what kind of person does that make me?_ Claus thought. He watched his father struggling to stand up, but instead of a dead look, a determined spark now gleamed in Flint's eye.

_"Turning yourself into a wreck isn't going to help anyone..."_

"You're damn right, Ninten. I'm not going down without a fight," Claus said out loud. He finally noticed his father's unsteady gait as he walked away. _It must be the withdrawal symptoms_.

Suddenly, Claus rushed over and looped one of his father's arms around his shoulders as support. Flint looked surprised at first, but his lips slowly twitched upwards in an expression of warm gratitude. Claus returned it with a small smile. It was a tiny step, but at least they were finally going in the right direction.

Then Alec burst in, interrupting the rare sentimental moment. "FLINT! CLAUS!" He gasped, clutching at his stitch. "Hospital called...The doctors...T-they said..." He took a shuddering breath before sputtering out.

"Lucas is dying."


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's note:**** Hey guys! School just started so updates will be a little slower. However, I decided to post this up and save ya'll the wait...until the next cliffhanger. ****Your support is once again, very welcome. Many thanks!**

**P.S. Just in case you don't know, you can check out a new mother/earthbound fanfic I created last week (if you want to). It's called The Strange Boy in the Astronomy Tower. I'll be updating that sometime soon as well.**

**Thank you for your time!**

**I don't own the Mother/Earthbound series.**

* * *

><p>They drove over to the hospital in a mad rush. When Alec opened the door to Lucas's room, Flint and Claus bolted in without pause. The doctor was already inside, waiting for the family to arrive. While Flint and Alec stopped next to the doctor, Claus sprinted towards the bedside and desperately grasped Lucas's hand as if it were a lifeline. Lucas's face was abnormally flushed, and he was shivering despite the layers of bedsheets that covered him.<p>

"What's wrong with my son?!" Flint demanded. The doctor looked at him with sad eyes. A bad sign.

"He was healing remarkably well despite the mild fever that seemed to persist since his accident. We did not notify you as it seemed relatively minor, but during this past hour the fever's hiked up to dangerously high temperatures." The doctor mopped his head with a handkerchief. "We've done everything we could, but there's no stopping it. His fever's already hit 110 degrees and counting."

"Isn't there anything else you could do to save him?" Alec pleaded.

"I don't understand how, but the major internal damage done to his organs was healed almost completely the past few days. But even at his state, we don't want to risk surgery." The doctor looked at him bleakly. "To be frank, we were surprised that the fever had not burned him out already. Even so, at this rate, the heat will soon denature his proteins and kill him within the hour." The doctor gazed with sorrow. "We thought you'd like to be present for his last moments-"

Flint strode over and shook the doctor roughly. "Do something!"

"I can't!"

"Flint-" Alec chimed in weakly.

"THAT'S MY SON LYING THERE!" Flint bellowed. "YOU CAN'T LET HIM DIE!"

"Please sir, I'm sorry but-"

Without a word, Flint rushed out the door after sweeping his hat abruptly over his eyes, deaf to the cries of the terrified doctor and Alec. The two men looked at each other briefly before running after the distraught man.

"FLINT! Come back!" They hurried out, leaving Claus alone in the empty, cold room.

"Lucas," Claus whispered, carefully tucking one of his twin's sweaty blond locks of hair behind his ear. Lucas gave no sign that he had heard him, only breathing rapidly in irregular gasps through the breathing mask. Claus squeezed his twin's hand hard.

"Can you can hear me, Lucas? Please, hold on a little longer..." Claus suddenly felt choked, his dry throat closing. But he knew that death was coming, ready to reap another soul. He almost felt like laughing bitterly at the absurdity of the situation, at the unfairness of the world: _Just how much more pain could one person take?_

Lucas heaved another rattling gasp-

Then his body fell limply onto the bed. The heart monitor beeped monotonously in a flat line, signaling the sudden end of a short life. Claus blinked at his lifeless twin lying motionless on the bed. This entire thing felt so surreal...

But he could no longer deny the painful truth: Lucas was dead. Claus suddenly felt extremely hot as a painful heat seared through his body. He felt his knees buckle under him, and felt a sickening woozy sensation grow in his gut. But through the haze of pain and exhaustion, he didn't loosen his firm embrace on his brother's body...he couldn't let go, no matter what...

"Goodbye, Lucas," Claus whispered as he felt blackness gnaw at the corners of his vision. "I'm...I'm sorry I couldn't save you." Everything was becoming blurry, the entire room was spinning, and voices, there were voices everywhere...

_Claus?_

The last thing he remembered was a steady heartbeat.

* * *

><p>Claus awoke in a field of sunflowers. He sat up abruptly. The sun was shining brightly overhead, the sky a beautiful shade of azure blue. The beautiful song of birds chirped through the air in perfect harmony.<p>

He suddenly felt very grumpy.

"Okay seriously, joke's over, Ninten. Where the heck am I? You'd better not have left me sleeping in the subway station-"

"Claus! Wake up!" Lucas suddenly appeared, tugging his hand.

Claus retreated back in alarm. "What the-? Lucas? But-wha-how?" He sputtered.

Lucas only grinned, sticking out his tongue. "Race you! Last one there is a rotten omelette!" He ran away quickly. Claus suddenly felt confused, but his stubborn streak urged him to run after his brother without question. Losing Lucas again wasn't an option.

"Where are we going?" He yelled. Lucas only ran faster. Claus sped up. "Fine then, don't answer me, that's cool too." Lucas only shot him an amused look before continuing on his path. Sunflower after sunflower they passed, the sun's rays and wind filling them up with life. Suddenly Claus saw a very familiar cliff edge looming in front of them.

"LUCAS!" Claus screeched in horror before darting forward and yanking his brother back. Lucas eyed him in confusion.

"Claus? Are you okay?"

"You were going to jump off that cliff!"

Lucas took one look at Claus's sweaty, indignant face before bursting into peals of laughter. "No, I wasn't. Did you think I was?"

"...No."

"Liar."

Claus's face was a tomato red. "Am not! And why are we here?" He watched the majestic view of the village from the clifftop. "Where are we?"

"Boys."

Claus stiffened. This voice...he hadn't heard this voice since she had died all those years ago...

"MOM!" Lucas yelled happily as he ran over to greet his mother. Hinawa embraced him with equal warmth and enthusiasm. Peering over at Claus, she suddenly gave a mischievous smirk.

"Come on, Mr. Grumpy-grumps, I know you want a hug too," she said cheekily, opening her arms out wider. Blinking back the sudden tears of emotion, Claus didn't hesitate to accept the invitation, running into her embrace. He breathed in deeply. His mother still smelled of warm sunflowers and rose water.

"I...I missed you," He said hoarsely, finally withdrawing from her embrace.

"As have I," Hinawa said softly, ruffling his hair gently.

"So where are we?" Claus asked. He suddenly felt scared and chanced a look at his brother. "Lucas...Lucas, you were dying in the hospital-" He paused. "Are we dead?"

Hinawa held a faraway look in her eyes. "I am dead," she agreed. "You two on the other hand...you are both currently standing between the realm of life and death."

"But how-?"

"Claus, listen to me. I don't have much time left. You will find out in due time," Her voice strained. Claus could tell; the sunflowers were beginning to look transparent. He nodded, and Hinawa looked relieved.

"You and your brother have unlocked a dangerous power within you. A psychic power that may cause dire consequences if it falls into the wrong hands." She opened her hands. "A shaman I had met had warned me of it before you were born. In some people, this power slumbers, ready to be awakened into use. Most of the time, it is never awakened. How your psychic core is awakened depends on the power and person."

"Your power," She gazed at them gravely. "Is Love."

Lucas nodded seriously.

Claus felt extremely let down. "...Oh."

Hinawa laughed, a tinkling bell-like sound. "Do not underestimate love, Claus. Love might not seem like much...But it is perhaps the most powerful force in the universe. Love can be used to hurt people, yet heal others. Love is the passion that drives us, Love is what brings us together. That same love for your brother unlocked the power within you." Her skin was starting to shimmer; Claus could see the blue sky through her now fading dress.

"But now that you know of its presence, keep it safe until the need arises. Psychic powers are rare, but for twins to share the same power...the strength of its awakening will certainly have attracted unwanted attention."

She knelt down and firmly gripped the startled Claus. "Protect each other. _Trust _each other."

Claus nodded wordlessly.

Hinawa relaxed, and withdrew from him with a sigh of relief. She was now a faint shade in the background. "Please stay safe, my sons."

Her voice was now a whisper in the wind.

_...I love you._

* * *

><p>He was submerged in blissful darkness.<p>

Claus felt weirdly energized and completely exhausted at the same time. His limbs were useless weights sinking into the bed, and his fingers tingled sharply as if he had pins and needles. Although soft sheets covered him, he felt as if he had swallowed several ice cubes. Claus shivered.

Suddenly, there was the crisp sound of ruffling sheets. Someone sitting close by, running their fingers in his sweaty hair.

"Claus? Are you awake?"

_Claus?...Claus?...Claus?..._The voice echoed in his ringing head.

"I had the...strangest dream," Claus croaked. His eyelids stayed closed; they rested heavily on his face. "Lucas was there, and mom was too. We were at the old sunflower field, remember?" He wrenched his eyes open to a slight crack. The figure in front of him was blurred. "Is that you, Lucas? Are you dead?"

He felt the stranger shift slightly, and suddenly felt scared. "Don't. Don't leave me, Lucas. Stay." Claus slurred. He felt a hand grip his reassuringly. A comforting presence brushed against his mind, and he felt his turbulent nightmares melt away into the deepest crevices of his soul.

_Sleep, Claus..._

And with a last sigh, Claus fell into peaceful dreams.

* * *

><p>"Claus?" Something cold poked his face. His eyes shot open. Ninten's face was less than an inch away from his, wide eyes staring down at him curiously. He was holding a wet rag in his left hand.<p>

"AAAAH!" Claus instinctively flinched, accidentally knocking his head against his.

"OW! Seriously, Claus?" Ninten yelped, falling off the bed and smacking his rear painfully.

"Geez, Ninten, I didn't want to wake up to your face! What a nightmare," Claus grumbled, rubbing his throbbing head. He looked up, squinting from the afternoon light. Suddenly, he finally realized that he was sitting in a familiar looking bed...

Ness popped up behind a still-complaining Ninten, waving sheepishly. "Hey Claus! Sorry for startling you. Your dad told us you were knocked unconscious by a fever and invited us over by the way." He set down the ice pack he had been holding onto the floor.

Ninten whistled. "Some fever it must have been. You've been home for three days. We heard your dad thinking to take you to the hospital this morning until it rapidly shot down a few hours ago."

"I was out for three days?" Claus said stunned. Then suddenly everything rushed back to him. He had been rushing to the hospital because-

"Lucas? Where's Lucas?" He blurted out in alarm. Ninten and Ness shot each other silly grins right before the bedroom door shot open coincidentally revealing a familiar golden-haired boy dressed in a cooking apron.

"Hey, what's going on here? Is something wrong?" Lucas chirped worriedly, shooting Ninten and Ness an anxious look before they both started cracking up uncontrollably at him. He rolled his eyes good-humoredly. "Hardy har har. Cut it out guys, making loud noises was funny the first time, but this it like the seventh time you guys have been doing it and I don't want to burn the omelettes again-"

"Lucas?" Claus said hoarsely. Lucas suddenly froze. The blonde swiveled around and plastered the hugest grin Claus had ever seen on his face.

"Claus?"

"LUCAS!" Claus yelled in glee, suddenly getting up to tackle his brother onto the floor. Lucas yelped as Claus ruffled his hair, caught him in a headlock, then crushed him in the biggest bear hug he could give him. Lucas scrabbled at his arms desperately.

"C-Claus...t-too tight...can't breathe," he managed to wheeze out.

"You idiot! When that truck ran into you, I thought-! AUGH!"

"Yeah, Claus, you should really ease off of poor Lucas a bit," Ness grinned, watching Lucas flounder pathetically across the floor. "We've done the same thing when we heard he was released from the hospital two days ago. The doctors were alarmed by how quickly he recovered."

"Ness almost choked him by accident," Ninten added. Ness gulped as the Beast arose slightly hopefully, sniffing the air. Claus's overprotective brotherly senses kicked in, and Claus gave him the evil eye while at the same time loosening his grip on Lucas.

"I didn't actually choke him, honest!" The poor baseball captain squeaked. Claus gave him one last half-hearted glare before succumbing to his giddyness. How could he not? Lucas was alive, and all was well at school, and - Wait a minute! -

"Why aren't you guys at school?" Claus squinted suspiciously at Ninten. "Did you guys skip class or something? Knowing Ninten, he's probably done something crazy like become a hobo truant."

"I did not!" Ninten protested. "And it's Saturday, you jerk!" He held up his wet rag. "We've been helping Lucas look after you and catch him up on homework."

"..." Claus was actually struck speechless by that. "...You did?"

"Heck yeah, I did!" Ninten said, looking smug. "'Cause I'm _responsible_."

"I helped too!" Ness chimed in.

"Ness just tagged along."

"HEY!"

Claus pinched himself. "Ninten, wake me up whenever responsible ever describes you, because I think I'm still dreaming."

Ninten threw him an offended look, then set pleading puppydog eyes onto Lucas. "Oh, come on, Lucas can back me up, right?"

"Yeah, Ninten has been a huge help-" Lucas glanced around to see Ness and Claus glaring evilly at him then squeaked, "Uh, I think I need to check if the omelettes are burning-"

"NOT TODAY, LITTLE BROTHER!" Claus shouted gleefully, pushing his brother roughly aside as he ran across the room. "I'm cooking the omelettes!"

"Claus! I'm only younger than you by two minutes!" Lucas yelled as he frantically followed him.

"Ninten, you coming?" Ness asked, pausing by the doorway. Ninten jerked out of his daze.

"Huh? Oh yeah, I'm coming, you go on ahead." He threw Ness a grin of reassurance, and heard his excited voice join the others. Ninten looked at his hands, his grin faltering. He gave a burst of concentration, and a few sparks of energy wrapped around his fingers before he extinguished them.

"Ninten, you can do this. You can tell your friends one day. They'll understand, right?" Ninten imagined his friends scorning him if they ever saw what he could do. Words like "Freak show" and "Monster" ran through his mind, and he flinched involuntarily. _What if they hate me for being abnormal?_

A sudden shriek. "Ninten! Help us!"

_Another time. I'll tell them another time._ Ninten resolved, looking determined before bracing himself for whatever mischief Claus had caused.

* * *

><p>Ninten was completely unprepared for the fiasco in the kitchen.<p>

"Do something, Lucas!"

"Claus, don't wave it around like that!" The younger twin yelped as his head narrowly avoided the flaming fireball of doom.

The frying pan in Claus's clutches was on _fire_.

Ness was doing his best to put it out, waving his hat over it to extinguish it. "Get some water!" he yelled.

Lucas ran over to the sink and frantically turned the valves on to max. Nothing happened. His face paled.

"Dad must have forgotten to pay the water bills again!"

"OH F-!"

"Claus!"

"-iddlesticks," Claus hastily said.

Ninten stood there, mouth agape. "What in the holy name of PSI-"

Lucas ran out of the room. "I'll check the bathroom," his muffled yells resounded as his footsteps thundered down the hallway.

"We're doomed!" Claus screamed, throwing the pan into the dry sink. The red head was total emotional wreck. "I can't believe I'm about to die after I wake up from a fever for three days!"

"Steak sauce!" Ness suddenly yelled, still fanning the burning pan.

"What?" Ninten looked at him as if he were crazy. "Ness, I know you like steak and all, but this is ridiculous-"

"No! There!" Ness pointed at the large steak sauce container on the cabinet. "It might help put the fire out!"

"Might?"

"What other choice do we have?!"

The door suddenly opened and a giant bellow made them all flinch. "OUT OF THE WAY!" Immediately a hose sprayed over the entire kitchen, dosing the flames out. When the forceful current of water suddenly stopped, the sopping children turned around to face an alarmingly unamused Flint.

"Uh, hi dad," Claus piped up nervously, his hair flattened down from being drenched by the flood of water.

"What the devil happened here?" Flint's voice sounded dangerous. Claus gulped.

"Well...we were cooking omelettes-"

"I wasn't," Ninten muttered. Ness elbowed him to shut up.

"-and the pan caught on fire," Claus finished lamely. Flint simply stared at him.

"Then why didn't you douse it with water?"

"We tried, but I think we forgot to pay the water bills 'cause no water was coming out of the faucet."

Flint blinked. "No, I paid in time. The kitchen sink's just broken. I came in to fix it."

"Oh."

The silence was so profound that Claus swore he could hear crickets chirping in the background. Flint looked first at Ninten, then Ness, then Claus with an unreadable expression. Frowning, he opened his mouth-

"I brought some water-WAAaaaah!" Lucas yelped as he tripped over his feet in his haste. The bowl of water flew from his hands and overturned right on top of Flint with a huge splash. Lucas froze, an expression of utmost horror on his face. Claus admitted that the comical sight would've been funnier had the situation not been so serious.

"Dad! I'm so sorry! Oh no, I didn't mean to get you wet!" Lucas babbled anxiously. Flint said nothing, and lifted the empty bowl from his head. He wordlessly gazed at Lucas, who was now profusely streaming apologies.

"Lucas. Look at me."

"...?" Lucas looked up frightened at Flint's stony expression. Then suddenly to their surprise, Flint caught Lucas square in the face with a hose of water.

"AUGH!" Now Lucas was dripping wet, sputtering out water. His hair hung down in long curtains not unlike Claus. Ninten snickered.

"Nice hairstyle, Lucas."

"And you two!" Flint sprayed him in the chest, and caught Ness who had been standing beside him. Claus gulped at Flint's mischievous stare fixate on him. He backed away slowly. "I think we still have one more person left..."

"Dad...! Come on, this isn't fair! I just woke up-"

"Now boys!"

With an anguished howl, Claus tried to run but was dragged down when his brother and friends latched onto his legs.

"No, No, NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

And thus the mighty beast was hosed down.

* * *

><p>Claus shifted around in bed, sighing contentedly. After Alec had arrived to lecture Flint for hosing the kitchen (Flint's playful smirk didn't even falter as he tried his best to look contrite), Ness and Ninten went home. For the first time in a while, they had sat together as a family for dinner, and talked. It was a lively atmosphere buzzing with energy as he and his twin brother chattered about this and that with Alec while Flint listened and occasionally added in his own two cents.<p>

"Lucas?"

"Yeah, Claus?"

"I'm really glad you're okay," he said sincerely. He felt his brother's smile from the other side of the room despite the darkness.

"Me too."

But there was one thing Claus had not yet forgotten.

"Lucas?"

"Hmm?" He responded sleepily.

"Why were you on the road in the first place? Why did you climb the fence?"

"Huh?"

"You know what I mean." He heard Lucas shift uneasily in his bedsheets.

"Claus..."

"I'm waiting."

He heard Lucas's sharp intake of breath. There was a louder rustle of bedsheets as Lucas abruptly sat up, dangling his feet on the bed. Sensing his troubled disquiet, Claus softly walked over to Lucas's bed and sidled next to him in the same manner. Two mirroring pairs of blue eyes met: one filled with fearful uncertainty, the other with confident compassion. Then Lucas finally spoke.

"That day," He began reluctantly. "Pokey approached me while you guys were off playing baseball."

"-And he shoved you into the road?" Claus said loudly, eyes bulging in fury. "That sadistic-"

"NO!" Lucas looked at Claus with amusement. "Can you stop jumping to conclusions and let me finish?"

"..." Claus still looked like he wanted to interrupt, but he nodded reluctantly.

"...He came to apologize and offered to play dodgeball," Lucas said softly. The blonde fidgeted slightly. "I...I didn't believe him at first, but he really seemed sincere..."

Claus still didn't like where this was heading. He had recognized similar situations many times in the past. "Lucas, you didn't-"

"I forgave him."

Claus groaned, setting a hand on his forehead. "What am I going to do with you? You're too nice, but this is just stupid!"

Lucas flushed. The blonde said nothing and stubbornly crossed his arms. For some reason, while Pokey had mistreated him, Lucas somehow felt as though the bully had not been completely lying. He couldn't explain it to Claus, and Claus certainly would not understand.

"Then what?" His twin's voice jolted Lucas out of his reverie. Claus's face looked ashen, as if he knew the rest of the story would get much worse. But his expression stayed remarkably stubborn. Lucas winced; he knew that look. There was no way Claus was simply going to let him wiggle out of this one.

"Claus..."

"It's okay! I promise not to laugh." As if understanding his internal conflict, Claus's expression softened, and he sent his twin a reassuring nod. However, Lucas only looked uncharacteristically frustrated.

"No, I can't tell you!"

"Darn it, Lucas! I don't care!" Claus gripped his shoulders firmly, making Lucas stare back at him in alarm. "I don't care if you said that aliens did it, I just want to _know_." His blue eyes bored into his piercingly. "Don't you think I deserve to have some answers after you left me hanging for the past week?"

"No, Claus, I can't tell you, because it doesn't make any sense to me!" He shouted back, pushing the ginger away roughly.

"What doesn't make sense?" Claus demanded. Both twins were now close to breaking point: Claus looking incredibly annoyed and Lucas looking like he was going to cry.

"It doesn't make sense because I saw _you_ standing in the middle of the road!"


End file.
